Abstract

ASSESSING PUBLIC AWARENESS AND DISPOSAL PRACTICES OF UNUSED MEDICATIONS: A STUDY OF THE INDIAN POPULATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPLICATIONS

Dr. N Rajesh Kumar, Ekta Hole*, Vinay Tekawade, Rahul Zalte, Saiyed Mohammad Ali, Vaibhav Sangle, Ratnadip Nikalje

ABSTRACT

The current research was undertaken to study the factors which are responsible for generation of unused medications at household level and also to study the attitude, knowledge and awareness about drug disposal and its environmental impact among general population across various states of India. Also, the study aimed to assess the knowledge and perception of people towards drug take back policy, if such policies would be introduced in future. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in the month of February 2022, using a pre-validated questionnaire consisting of 21 questions which were related to the disposal of unused, expired medication and people perception about drug take back policy. The questionnaire was distributed through a Google form link. The study enrolled individuals of both the genders of age group 16 to 70. The obtained responses were verified for accuracy prior to analysis. The data collected underwent analysis through the utilisation of Microsoft Excel for the purpose of obtaining descriptive statistics and SPSS V23.

Keywords: Unused medicines, Household, Disposal, Knowledge, Environment, Drug take back, Factor analysis.